Dealing with the stuff: the library policy-maker

1
Dealing with the stuff the library
policy-makers view

• Hazel Woodward
• Cranfield University h.woodward_at_cranfield.ac.uk
• Presentation to the eLib conference
• Information Ecologies 2-4 December 1998, York

2
The issues

• information technology
• budgets/economic models
• use and usage
• skills, training, awareness
• teaching and learning environments
• archiving

3
Information Technology

• IT infrastructure
• converged services
• collaboration with Computing Services
• library hardware/software budgets
• space for equipment
• impact on library service
• IT provision/campus/remote

4
Information Strategies
MISSION AND STRATEGIC PLAN
RESEARCH STRATEGY
TEACHING AND LEARNING STRATEGY
INFORMATION STRATEGY

INFORMATION SERVICES STRATEGY
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY
HUMAN RESOURCE STRATEGY
5
Library budgets

• CURL 42(B) 50(S) 8(E)
• Old 36(B) 52(S) 12(E)
• New 45(B) 41(S) 14(E)
• Cranfield 24(B) 41(S) 35(E)

6
Library budgets

• cost of electronic products - where does the
  money come from?
• purchasing options
• local/national site licences (e.g.NESLI)
• consortia purchasing (International Coalition of
  Library Consortia - ICOLC)
• keeping up the pressure/informing publishers
• (e.g.JISC PA Working Groups)

7
Library budgets

• baskets and bundles - lack of flexibility
• single-article delivery v. subscription
• extended access for small additional cost (PSLI,
  NESLI)
• are we interested?
• can we afford it?
• VAT
• changing the economic model of scholarly
  communication (e.g. Harnad, IOPP, SPARC)

8
Use and usage

• opportunity to improve measurements of use
• privacy and confidentiality
• collection of data number of searches number
  of menu selections number of items examined

9
Use and usage

• ICOLC Guidelines for Statistical Measures of
  Usage of Web-based Indexed, Abstracted and Full
  Text Resources
• http//www.library.yale.edu/consortia/webstats.htm
  l

10
Skills, Training and Awareness

• a deep gap in our knowledge
• how do users search for information?
• Cranfield AIM-UK project - 400 aerospace
  engineers and scientists
• 78 experienced some difficulty in identifying
  relevant material
• 60 felt they missed significant information
• 25 spent between 21-40 of their time searching
  for information

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Skills Training and Awareness

• JISC Committee on Awareness, Liaison and Training
  (CALT)
• staff development - C IT skills
• networked learning - students experiences
• communication skills text based, voice-based,
  video-conferencing
• teaching learning environments

12
Archiving

• legal deposit legislation
• role of publishers individual libraries
• role of national libraries
• CEDARS Project (CURL Exemplars in Digital
  Archives)
• long-term preservation interim access archiving
• primary resources e-journals online databases
  etc.
• JISC/CEI Interim Preservation Strategy